Stair construction



Patented Aug. 27, 1946 UNITED STATES ENT' GFF-ICE f STAIR' CONSTRUCTION MichaelfHurley, Denver, Colo.

ApplicationDecembcr 29, 19,44',S'erialNo. 57 0,268:

This: invention' relates to a; stair construction' adapted for preiabri'cation in the form of' units susceptible of convenient interengaging` assembly to meet thestairrequirements' of a: given installation, andhasr as ansobject to provide an improved such construction.

A further object of the invention isto provide an improved interengageablerelation of stringer and step units constituting at stair assembly.

A further Vobject ofthe-*invention is'to provide an improved construction of cooperating Stringer andl step units adapted; for prefabrication in quantity and subsequent assembly at the site to meet varying stairrequirements of speci'c installations.

A further object ofthe inventiony is'to provide an improved construction of stair stringer arranged tosuccessively receive, engage with, and su-pport corresponding ends of a plurality of step units constitutingy a stair flight.

A further-object" of the invention is to pro-vide an improvedv stair step unit construction successively engageable in supported relation with a pair of stringers to constitute a stair flight:

With the foregoing and other objects in view, my invention consistsin the construction, arrangement, and combination of elements hereinafter set forth, pointed out in my claims, and illustrated by the accompanying drawing, in which- Figure 1 isv a somewhaty diagrammaticl crosssection taken longitudinallyy through an incomplete stair flight embodying' the principles of the invention.. Figure 2 isa fragmentary, detail section through a stair ightconstruction similar to Figure 1 and illustratinga modicaton ofthe showing ofthe latter figure. Figure 3 isV a cross section, on an enlarged scale, takenon the indicated line 3--3 of: Figure 1. Figure 4 is a view similar to Figure 3, on the same scale as Figurer-1', illustrating modications cfconstruction4 and arrangement embraced within the inventive concept.

The improved stair construction of'. the invention includes stringerelements susceptible of convenient prefabrication from standard shapesand sizes of structural units in lengths adjusted to the span and anchorage characteristics of a given flight installation, or in non-adjusted lengths readily workable at the site for adaptation to specific installation requirements, and step units, each embodying a tread and a riser portion, arranged for convenient successive engagement` in supported relation with a pair of such stringers to complete the desired stair flight. t

The stair-flight-supporting stringers of the invention may be of any material, size, shape, and specific construction suited to their function and cooperative relationship with the step units as hereinafter set'forth, it being fundamental to the designed tov carry theA loads contemplated to bev imposed on the flight which theyA support and that the stringer construction provide a continuously-uniform interior chamber opening through at least one end of each Stringer and lengthwise thereof through a straight, relatively-narrow, longitudinal slot intersecting a Stringer wall and opening through the Stringer open end.y As typically shown in Figures l, 2, and 3, the stringers of the invention may, for many installations, take the form of straight, tubular members I0, of suitable size, length, and strength, formed with straight, longitudinal slots II throughout their lengths, and susceptible of fixed disposition, in any appropriate manner, to bridge the span of the stair flight at the desired inclination; Figure 4 illustrating an alternative or modified form of Stringer I, of boX-girder or analogous type susceptible of fabrication as a single rolled section or asf-an assembly of standard structural shapes, incorporating and characterized by the longitudinal slot II. l

Step units of the improvement, as represented bythe drawing, are designated by the numeral li andeach of said units includes rigidly and perpendicularly interrelated tread and riser ,por-

tions i3 and i4, respectively, xedly engaging atV their ends withy and in perpendicular relation to end webs I5`si-milarly projecting in spaced, parallelism-from the unit ends. The step units I2 may be formed and constructed in any convenient and suitable manner from any appropriatefmaterial; the length of the unit tread and riser portions being determined at the timel of unit manufacture to provide the desired width of completed stair', andV` the width of tread I3 and height ofy riser 'It being also proportioned in manufacture to develop the desired angle or slope in the completedf flight. The webs I5 preferably correspond in width with their associated treads I3 and have lengths greater than the heights of their associatedrisers E14, andare so related totheir` tread and riser' portions as to assume substantially vertical positions when the associated tread is horizontally disposed. Ends of the webs. i5 remote from-the associated treads I3 arel sloped or inclined, as indicated aty I 6 in Figure 1, to such angle with the plane ofthe associated tread I3 as the slope ofthe nished ight isto make with the horizontal, the longer side margin, ofk eachweb i5 rising from and extending aboveA the associatedy riser te and the shorter web side margin rising from extending above the free edge of the ssociated tread i3. Inwardly,adjacentandparalleling the sloped margin I6 of each web I 5, lugs cr ears i? are provided in suitable fixed, projectf ing relation with one or both of the web surfaces,

said lugs or ears being struck from rthe-material of'` thev webs, as shown, or otherwise formed, on. or`

*Stringer 'wherewith the step unit is to be associated, The ears or lugs I1 are so disposed and arranged on each web I5 as to define by their mergence with the web plane a line paralleling the sloped end I6 of the web, said line of mergence lying on the side of the lugs or ears I'I remote from the sloped end I6 at a distance from said sloped end corresponding with the depth of the Stringer interior chamber, so that, when a web I5 is edgewise engaged in the slot I'I of a Stringer II! or I0' with its sloped end IB in sliding'relation with the unslotted side of saidstringenin the; manner indicated at the upper end of Figure 1, the earsor lugs I1 are disposed Within the Stringer chamber adjacent and in position to bear against inner margins of the slot II where they serve to slida-bly mount the corresponding end Aof the step unit on the associated Stringer and hold said step unit against radial or lateral separation from the Stringer.

' like, hollow stringers each formed with an end,

With the construction and arrangement of elements shown and above described, the Stair night may be completed by suspending the successive step units from and beneath a pair of Stringers with their tread portions extending forwardly relative to their associated riser portions, as shown in Figures l, 2 and 3, or the stringers may be positioned with their slots opening upwardly, the step units reversed, and the flight completed by engaging the said units with and to rise above Y the stringers in such disposition as places the unit tread portions in rearwardly extending relation with their associated riser portions, as shown in Figure 4.

As is indicated in Figure 2, the completed flight may be arranged to dispose the stringers as handrails, the only variation in construction required being an increase in the length of the step unit webs I5. Y

The laterally-disposed meeting edges of adjacent step units may be variously worked for such structural cooperation as may be deemed desirable fola given installation, it being essentially ,unnecessary that Said edges interengage other than along a simple line ofy contact. However, as is indicated in the drawing, said edges may be Y finished as correspondingly inclined flanges I8 adapted for surf ace interengagement and such interconnection, a-s bymeans of studslugs, bolts, rivets, welds, and the like, as 'may be desired.

The step unit tread, riser, and web portions maybe fabricated and finished in either, solid or skeleton form to function as exposed elements for the purposes designed, or, as may be more Y generally the case, said portions may be fabril. Arstairv construction comprising a pair lof* hollow, longitudinally-slotted stringers, step units formedwith end webs extending perpendicularly from theV tread portions thereof engageable through and longitudinally of the slots of said stringers, and lugs outstanding from the stringerengaging web portion faces cooperableinteriorly of and with said stringers to inhibit weby displacement laterally and radially thereof.

2. A stair construction comprising ,a pair of opening, longitudinal slot, step units formed with end webs extending perpendicularly vfrom the Ytread portions thereof engageable through and longitudinallyof the Stringer slots in end-abutted, slidable relation with the slot-opposed Stringer wall, and lugs outstanding from stringerhous A able face portions of said webs disposed for cooperation with interior slot margins to inhibit stringers, a plurality of like step units, and means for successively engaging Isaid units in slidably supportedA relation with said stringers,A said means comprising an 'end-opening' slot longitudinally of each Stringer, end webs on and extending perpendicularly from the thread portions of said step units engageable through and longitudinally of said slots'in end-abutted, slidable re-Y lation with the slot-opposed Stringer wall, and lugs outstanding from the Stringer-housable web portion faces disposedY vfor slidable cooperation with interior slot margins;

5. In a Stair construction, a pair of like, hollow stringers, a plurality of Vlike step units presenting rigidly Aand perpendicularly interrelated tread and riser portions, and means for successively engaging saidrunits in slidably supported relation with said stringers to complete a stair flight, said means comprising an end-opening'slot longitudinally of each Stringer, end webs rigidly associated with and extending perpendicularly from the tread portion of each step unit forengagement through said Stringer slots, free end portions on said webs parallel to the slope of the stair flight for slidable, step-positioning engagement against the slot-opposed i Stringer wall, and lugs outl Y standing from the stringer-hous'able web portions Vdisposed in spaced parallelism with the inclina-` tion of the web free end for slidable cooperation with interior slot margins. Y

6. In a stair construction having a pair of lik hollow stringers each formed with an end-opening, longitudinal slot, a plurality of step'units suc-l and engageable Vthrough the Stringer slots, and

lugs outstanding-from the stringerhou'sable web end portions disposed in spaced parallelism with the inclination ,of the web free end for slidable cooperation with interior slotrmargins.

l MICHAEL HURLEY. 

